How long till the fast food cravings leave?

Options
megans1980
megans1980 Posts: 22 Member
in Motivation and Support
Good Morning,

It has been 7 days of logging and staying within my daily calories which is a first for me. Ive never made it past 2 days. I am struggling with one thing though, the need to eat fast food. I would like to know how long the cravings lasted for you? I am not craving anything in-particular which is frustrating. Just the overall need to go get something greasy or salty. I know for me, it is all a mental game and a bad habit I am struggling to break. I don't need it or want it but my mind keeps telling me I wont be able to relax or move on until I get it. Please tell me a time will come soon when I am free of the unwanted cravings.

Thank you!
«1

Replies

  • jkwolly
    jkwolly Posts: 3,049 Member
    Options
    It's totally mental! Just hold fast.

    BUT if you want something badly, make it fit into your goals.
  • Serah87
    Serah87 Posts: 5,481 Member
    Options
    I don't. I make it fit into my calories, but then I only have it about once a month or every other month. Not on purpose, just rather have seafood since we moved here to Florida. :happy:
  • birdsetfree
    birdsetfree Posts: 9 Member
    Options
    I just keep telling myself that I will have another chance to eat the grease. Sometimes I decided if I'd rather have a great hamburger later or a crappy one from a ff joint now. Usually I choose the great one from a favorite restaurant, then it's more of a treat and I really have to want it.
  • ewennmacher
    ewennmacher Posts: 46
    Options
    everyone has their trigger foods. i think it takes a good 6-8 weeks to change habbits once you notice a change in your body, it will be a big motivater for you not to want those things. it takes time to change life-long habbits, but you can do it!
  • AZKristi
    AZKristi Posts: 1,801 Member
    Options
    It usually takes about a week or two for cravings to fall by the wayside. Some people can work a fast food meal into their macros, other people have a harder time. I personally have eaten more fast food than any one person ever needs to consume in a lifetime. And, I have the type of brain that begins to crave precise combination of carbs/fat/salt found in most fast food as soon as I start eating it again. So, I do my best to stay away from it too. Usually I cut back on refined carbs and within a week or two, my fast food and carb cravings are gone. I still eat fruits, veggies, and whole grains.
  • lindanewland37
    lindanewland37 Posts: 38 Member
    Options
    I was a fast food junkie for over 20 years. Now because of health issues I have to really watch my fat and sodium. The first two weeks was the hardest for me - all I could think about was getting some fast food. It doesn't help that there are several fast food places right across the street from my house - LOL. After a month I didn't think about it that much and now it's been a year since I changed my lifestyle and I don't think about it at all. I have to confess to occasionally getting a small order of fries at McDonalds but like the previous poster said I fit it into my calories for that day. I can't eat that level of sodium and fat every day so it is an occasional treat - maybe every few months. Good luck to you - it was a difficult habit for me to change but you can do it.
  • alpine1994
    alpine1994 Posts: 1,915 Member
    Options
    I've been in maintenance for over a year now and I still crave things that I used to eat all the time. My tastes have definitely change and my body handles an onslaught of salt and sugar not as well as it used to so that definitely makes it easier. I used to eat 2 donuts for breakfast every day and I know that if I did that now, I would get a painful sugar-rush headache and my stomach would probably do flips but that doesn't mean I don't want a donut every now and then! And when I REALLY REALLY want one, I will have one, but I also remember that I shouldn't have another one for a while.
  • megans1980
    megans1980 Posts: 22 Member
    Options
    Thank you! I know I can do it. It is just a matter of being stronger than my craving obsessions. Ha! Im glad to know Im not the only one who has them.
  • crystalwilliams19
    crystalwilliams19 Posts: 4
    Options
    Mind over matter :)

    Don't give in darling x
  • blc1971
    blc1971 Posts: 170 Member
    Options
    It took about a month before I really lost a taste for fast food. I just kept thinking about how many calories I would save by making a healthier choice and I was committed to not breaking my resolve. That being said, I basically cut out all fast food when, after about 6 months of healthier eating, I decided to indulge in a quarter pounder with cheese and fries. My stomach immediately felt the effects of all the grease and I was miserable the rest of the day. Even the following day I felt bloated. It was not pretty. After that I decided it wasn't worth it.
  • wannalose25
    wannalose25 Posts: 69 Member
    Options
    About a month ago, I started keeping the food diary again.. The 1st week I had horrible fast food cravings, but soon the cravings stopped. However, during 5 of the past 12 or so days i've started craving fast food again. My theory is it's part of the culture in which we live. We drive by or see advertisments almost constantily; it's the western diet. sometimes i give in, other times i remind myself of the damage fast food has/can do to my body/temple. Also, Chipolte has become my favorite fast food restaurant. I get the vegartian bowl with black beans and brown rice; no cheese or sour cream. DELICIOUS!!!! 630 CALORIES AND VERY FILLING.
  • seltzermint555
    seltzermint555 Posts: 10,742 Member
    Options
    I just keep telling myself that I will have another chance to eat the grease. Sometimes I decided if I'd rather have a great hamburger later or a crappy one from a ff joint now. Usually I choose the great one from a favorite restaurant, then it's more of a treat and I really have to want it.

    Exactly this.

    It doesn't have to be black/white OP. You don't have to swear off fast food for the rest of your life.
  • BodyByBex
    BodyByBex Posts: 3,685 Member
    Options
    When I craved salty/greasy foods I would have someone else portion a small amount for me. I would usually have my mom get it for me :blushing: She would bring me a portioned serving size of Lay's potato chips, usually. Then I ate it. Then I evaluated how I felt afterwards and wrote it down in a journal. Thus far, I have written that I don't feel satisfied when I eat things like that and sometimes I even get nauseous. Now, when I have the cravings, I look back in the journal at each time I ate those types of foods and ask myself if feeling those things again is REALLY worth it . Generally, it's not and I decide to have half an apple or some celery.


    Crunchy foods make me feel more satisfied for some reason.:smile:
  • DEPick
    DEPick Posts: 70 Member
    Options
    everyone has their trigger foods. i think it takes a good 6-8 weeks to change habbits once you notice a change in your body, it will be a big motivater for you not to want those things. it takes time to change life-long habbits, but you can do it!
    ^this. The change is addicting
  • DeterminedFee201426
    DeterminedFee201426 Posts: 859 Member
    Options
    i been stop eating fast food 5 yrs ago once i find out how bad it is for me .. also fast food is loaded with thousands of calories do not want that even when i treat myself
  • Serah87
    Serah87 Posts: 5,481 Member
    Options
    i been stop eating fast food 5 yrs ago once i find out how bad it is for me .. also fast food is loaded with thousands of calories do not want that even when i treat myself

    Thousands of calories?? :huh:

    Ok. :laugh:
  • lemonsnowdrop
    lemonsnowdrop Posts: 1,298 Member
    Options
    i been stop eating fast food 5 yrs ago once i find out how bad it is for me .. also fast food is loaded with thousands of calories do not want that even when i treat myself

    Preeetty sure I ate McDonald's the other day and stayed below 500 calories. But okay.
  • sodakat
    sodakat Posts: 1,126 Member
    Options
    When I craved salty/greasy foods I would have someone else portion a small amount for me. I would usually have my mom get it for me :blushing: She would bring me a portioned serving size of Lay's potato chips, usually. Then I ate it. Then I evaluated how I felt afterwards and wrote it down in a journal. Thus far, I have written that I don't feel satisfied when I eat things like that and sometimes I even get nauseous. Now, when I have the cravings, I look back in the journal at each time I ate those types of foods and ask myself if feeling those things again is REALLY worth it . Generally, it's not and I decide to have half an apple or some celery.


    Crunchy foods make me feel more satisfied for some reason.:smile:

    Very smart of you, journaling the experience and reading your journal later INSTEAD of eating foods your craved is BRILLIANT! Way to go and thanks for the inspiration.
  • generallyme2
    generallyme2 Posts: 403 Member
    Options
    I still eat fast food on occasion, especially if there are some healthier options. One thing that helps is learning more about the food and the process they use (honestly, it grosses me out enough that I don't want to eat it :p). FF isn't my big craving though, sugar is, and that's a WHOLE 'nother story lol!
  • DucklingtoSwan
    DucklingtoSwan Posts: 169 Member
    Options
    It was tough for me the first few weeks so I steered clear completely, now about once a month I'll have some fast food as a treat... I scoured the company web sites to find the best deal for the calories and for me it is a Burger King Whopper Junior (no cheese, but the mayo is my vice) and a small order of fries (about 680 but obviously eliminating the mayo would help, I know). It can be fit into my calorie day if I've planned ahead. I eat really slowly and enjoy the heck out of every bit, and it's so filling I can take it easy at the other two meals that day and not fee deprived. Or possibly either eliminate a snack somewhere in there, or I'll add an extra lap around the park when walking the dogs, etc. to make a bit of that back. That ind of thing.

    Like i said it's maybe once a month if that. And I have noticed that while it's good going down, it does taste very extra heavy and rich to me now. I cannot imagine eating a full-size Whopper now!

    This coming from the girl who (I am mortified to admit) used to quite regularly hit the drive thru when Whoppers were like 2 for $4, and have them both gone within an hour. If I tried that now, I feel I would probably get sick and pass out before I got through. :embarassed:

    My point is, the cravings will ease, even if they never do go away, they will get better. And you'll be able to work it back into your life. Just hang in there! :flowerforyou:

Categories